Pancreatic cancer research benefits as high-profile people draw attention to the disease.

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We are fascinated with celebrities and every move they make, and their influence on what's considered cool and trendy is huge. When a famous name is associated with a product, such as a brand of soda or sports shoe, sales can rise dramatically. So when celebrities put that same kind of star power behind a serious cause, they can raise both awareness and money. Recently, two people have had just that kind of impact on pancreatic cancer.

Celebrities Help Put Pancreatic Cancer in the Spotlight
Randy Pausch may not have started out as a celebrity beyond his classroom, but he became one. Pausch was a computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. In September 2007, as he faced the end of his life, he gave a now-famous inspirational lecture, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams," and even shared the details of his illness as images of his test scans were projected.

The ideas in the moving speech were turned into a bestselling book called The Last Lecture (Hyperion). Pausch died in July 2008, but the attention he drew to pancreatic cancer continues through his work.

Though people knew Patrick Swayze as an actor from his roles in such movie blockbusters as "Dirty Dancing" and "Ghost," in March 2008 he took on a new and equally influential role as a pancreatic cancer patient. Although initial reports stated that Swayze had only a few months to live, he continued his acting career and public appearances after his diagnosis was made public. Swayze died in September 2009.

Pancreatic Cancer: How the Celebrity Connection Helps
"Pancreatic cancer is really a terrible disease, with not quite all, but almost all people who get it dying from the disease. The cure rate for pancreatic cancer is very, very small," says Otis W. Brawley, MD, chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society.

Reports of Swayze's living as normal a life as possible brought hope to other pancreatic cancer patients. Because statistics surrounding pancreatic cancer are bleak, seeing a public figure battling pancreatic cancer can be inspirational for others dealing with the disease.

In the case of Randy Pausch, "[he] brought a great deal of grace and introspection that I think is helpful for anyone with a fatal disease — the way he faced the fact that his life was ending," Dr. Brawley says.

Celebrities also have a big impact on fundraising efforts. So much research and so many support organizations are funded by donations from the public that when celebrities lend their name to an organization or become associated with a disease, donations rise. High-profile cancer patients also draw attention to the need for more research, better screening and early detection methods, and more effective treatments.

Bringing attention to one kind of cancer also is generally good for other types of cancer. "Generally if we fund one, there's always a trickle-down to other diseases," Brawley says. "Funding the best science is what we really ought to do. There's no early detection and early treatment options for pancreas cancer. With breast cancer, if a woman finds a lump in her breast, we might very well be able to save her life. Because the pancreas is in the middle of the abdomen, when we diagnose pancreas cancer, it's usually because of metastases," says Brawley, meaning that the cancer has already spread.

By the time the cancer has metastasized to other parts of the body, it becomes very difficult to treat, which is why pancreatic cancer's survival rate is so low. Only 5 percent of pancreatic cancer patients will survive for five years.

Pancreatic Cancer: Focusing on the Future
Because pancreatic cancer is not as common as some other cancers, it has not gotten the amount of attention or funding that some other cancers have. The poor pancreatic cancer survival rate and lack of early detection methods show that much research is needed to help people with the disease. With the legacy of Randy Pausch and Patrick Swayze, more and more people will become aware of this disease, and the chance of finding ways to identify pancreatic cancer early and treat it more effectively will grow.

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